DEFINING FIRST STRIKE AND EARLY RELEASE COINSAmong mints, there is no industry-wide standard for First Strike or Early Release coins. However, the Professional Coin Grading Service (PCGS) and Numismatic Guaranty Corporation (NGC), both leaders in third-party certification, define First Strike and Early Release coins as those received by the grading service in the first 30 days of release from the mint. Collectors and dealers pay a per-coin fee to gain special certification and packaging for coins under the PCGS First Strike and NGC Early Releases programs. Cutoff dates for coin certification are listed publicly and are generally verified using packaging postmarks. While PCGS focuses primarily on coins produced by the U.S. Mint, NGC certifies Early Release coins from mints spanning the globe.

Collectors should be aware the manufacturing mint, including the U.S. Mint, does not apply the First Strike label or Early Release designation to any of its products. The U.S. Mint also does not track the order in which coins are produced and does not number its products.

According to the U.S. Mint, strict quality controls ensure each coin in a series is equally valuable and created using the highest quality dies. The mint also states its manufacturing facilities replace die sets multiple times during production so a collector is unlikely to pinpoint exactly which coins were produced first from a new die set.

While the U.S. Mint does not recognize any differences between First Strike coins and any other coin minted during a production run, some collectors value the distinction of owning the most freshly minted coins. In rare cases, these coins may have been produced before a design mistake was corrected or other change was made. Small distinctions between coins add interest and enjoyment for many collectors. Official certification packaging on a coin may also raise a coinís resale value and premium over time.

I'm also disappointed that the Royal Mint has published images such as these. The coins look totally non-realistic. Anyway, I've just looked in the mirror, and my face looks exactly like a cartoon. Who is doing this? First coins, now humans. Does anybody else think we're in the Matrix?

There is no pressing legal need for them not to be published, either. Previously the Royal Mint has been happy to publish the names of designers of UK coins.

Unless they promised anonymity during the selection process, I guess. To be honest I'm scratching my head as to why an artist would actively want to remain anonymous rather than promote his/her work and take advantage of the publicity of a nationally significant commission. But if there is such a person, and they have participated on the understanding that the designers would remain anonymous, then there could be a legal hindrance to publicising them.

But broadly I agree with <k>, it is strange and an unwelcome development.

An acquiantance pointed out the wording on their website on the page of the Silver Proof ones: "Made in the UK and certified by The Royal Mint". Does this leave an option (some of) these were minted at Pobjoy, Tower or Commonwealth Mint?

To answer this question myself: All coins were produced at the Royal Mint.